Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Are the Highest Response "Politics" Thread Subjects Least Likely to Impact Any of Us?

host · 03-22-2005, 05:20 AM

I see this as a trend here and I am very disturbed by it, because there are plenty of other places at TFP to discuss less relevant and pressing issues than the politics of governance, war, and international relations.

I increasingly find myself reacting to thread subjects that I view as least likely to affect me or this country in a serious way, by not posting to them, so as
not to add to their prominence in any way. If even the members wiho are interested enough in politics get distracted by the current "top ten" thread list,
then I don't hold out much hope for the future direction of TFP Politics:
Here are the "top ten" current thread titles, highest number of views, first:

------------------------------------------------------ # of Views Posts
1.)Comatose Woman's Parents Hope for Legal Help ----- 2352 ---- 269
2.)We're number 37!! We're number 37!! -------------- 1425 ----- 131
3.)Does anyone think this is a good thing? ------------- 800 ------- 115
4.)ANWR: To drill or not to drill? ----------------- 689 ------ 87
5.)An enlightening interview with Noam Chomsky 389 31
6.)Men are better than women at being cops 547 60
7.)Poll: What is your political affiliation (or do you 353 32
8.)Is there some sort of daily Right Wing Memo? 230 27
9.)Playgirl editor fired after admitting being Republican 222 18
10.)Common Ground Exp.1: Universal Healthcare 188 21

This is just a snapshot in time, but the issue as I see it is do you want this
TFP Politics Forum thread list to bear a stronger resemblance to the NY Times
or the NY Post, to C-Span or to the "E" Channel ?

A year from now, what do you think will matter more to you and your family,
whether Ms. Schiavo gets her feeding tube reinserted, or whether the falling
value of the dollar and the increasing scarcity of oil cause gasoline prices to
approach $3.00 per gallon ? How about whether a former Playgirl editor sues
her last employer, or whether Bush attempts to spend his "political capital" in
ways that you agree or disagree with ?

Do you agree that you shape the direction of this forum by the thread subjects that you choose to start, view, and post on? Do you agree that the
trend is towards an avoidance of threads with contentious but highly relevant and potentially personally important issues ? Bush admin. policies that could increase the likelihood of a military draft, comes to mind as an
issue that receives far too little attention and discussion here, for example.

Do you think that this is a timely thread and an important observation?
Have we become just a mirror here of a larger, distracted populace and it's
legislature, or am I over reacting ?

03-22-2005, 05:20 AM	#1 (permalink)
host Banned	Are the Highest Response "Politics" Thread Subjects Least Likely to Impact Any of Us? I see this as a trend here and I am very disturbed by it, because there are plenty of other places at TFP to discuss less relevant and pressing issues than the politics of governance, war, and international relations. I increasingly find myself reacting to thread subjects that I view as least likely to affect me or this country in a serious way, by not posting to them, so as not to add to their prominence in any way. If even the members wiho are interested enough in politics get distracted by the current "top ten" thread list, then I don't hold out much hope for the future direction of TFP Politics: Here are the "top ten" current thread titles, highest number of views, first: ------------------------------------------------------ # of Views Posts 1.)Comatose Woman's Parents Hope for Legal Help ----- 2352 ---- 269 2.)We're number 37!! We're number 37!! -------------- 1425 ----- 131 3.)Does anyone think this is a good thing? ------------- 800 ------- 115 4.)ANWR: To drill or not to drill? ----------------- 689 ------ 87 5.)An enlightening interview with Noam Chomsky 389 31 6.)Men are better than women at being cops 547 60 7.)Poll: What is your political affiliation (or do you 353 32 8.)Is there some sort of daily Right Wing Memo? 230 27 9.)Playgirl editor fired after admitting being Republican 222 18 10.)Common Ground Exp.1: Universal Healthcare 188 21 This is just a snapshot in time, but the issue as I see it is do you want this TFP Politics Forum thread list to bear a stronger resemblance to the NY Times or the NY Post, to C-Span or to the "E" Channel ? A year from now, what do you think will matter more to you and your family, whether Ms. Schiavo gets her feeding tube reinserted, or whether the falling value of the dollar and the increasing scarcity of oil cause gasoline prices to approach $3.00 per gallon ? How about whether a former Playgirl editor sues her last employer, or whether Bush attempts to spend his "political capital" in ways that you agree or disagree with ? Do you agree that you shape the direction of this forum by the thread subjects that you choose to start, view, and post on? Do you agree that the trend is towards an avoidance of threads with contentious but highly relevant and potentially personally important issues ? Bush admin. policies that could increase the likelihood of a military draft, comes to mind as an issue that receives far too little attention and discussion here, for example. Do you think that this is a timely thread and an important observation? Have we become just a mirror here of a larger, distracted populace and it's legislature, or am I over reacting ? Last edited by host; 03-22-2005 at 05:27 AM..